Every battery has a finite life cycle, beyond which its ability to store and deliver charge is significantly reduced. The life cycle of a modem, rechargeable battery, e.g., a nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery, may include hundreds of charge/discharge phases, while that of a common alkaline battery has only one discharge phase. At the end of the life cycle, the material constituents of the battery remain present, even though chemical and structural changes have reduced their ability to store and deliver charge. Recycling a battery at this stage may offer economic, safety-related, and environmental benefits.
Such benefits may derive from the fact that at least some of the material constituents of the battery—metals, especially—may be less expensive and less environmentally disruptive to recycle than to garner from raw materials. Further, some battery constituents may be toxic and/or unsuitable for disposal in a sanitary landfill or sewer system. Further still, the internal constituents of some batteries—NiMH batteries, for example—may be air sensitive and may pose a fire hazard if included in a generic waste stream.
With increasing world-wide proliferation of batteries, driven by a demand for consumer-electronic devices and for device portability, and with battery-powered vehicles entering the transportation sector, the various benefits of battery recycling are further amplified.